The event was put on by the Berkshire Eagle at Shakespeare & Co’s Tina Packer Playhouse. Democrat Leigh Davis of Great Barrington and Independent Marybeth Mitts of Lenox are facing off in the November 5th election.
Davis is the Great Barrington selectboard vice chair, while Mitts sits on the Lenox select board.
They’re fighting for the seat representing the 18 communities of Southern Berkshire County held for over 20 years by retiring Democrat Smitty Pignatelli.
Mitts was asked why she chose to run as an independent in a deeply Democratic region within a deeply Democratic commonwealth.
“I came to this decision quite by accident," she answered. "I went in to get my papers to run for office. I had re-registered as a Democrat after Super Tuesday, because it was my constitutional right to become unenrolled for Super Tuesday and select the person of my choice. And when I went in to get the papers, I found out that a deadline had passed. I didn't know there would be a deadline, so I went back in got the papers for an independent, and I figured, I'm running on my record. Everyone in Berkshire County already knows what I've done for this for the town of Lenox, and I'm pretty confident that running on my record is going to be adequate. So, I took that leap, and if I go to the State House, I will certainly be caucusing with the Democrats, because that's the major party.”
Davis, who defeated two fellow Democrats in September’s primary, came into the debate fresh off of endorsements from top party brass like Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey. She said she appreciated Mitts’ explanation as she was confused about how her rival had come to that decision.
“When I decided to run, the first thing I did was look up, go to the Secretary of Commonwealth's website and look up a pamphlet that says how to run for office," said Davis. "And anyone that is going to take this seriously enough should really look up this website and look at the steps needed to run for office. And almost immediately, I saw the deadlines, and I made sure I hit each deadline, so whether it was to make sure I was enrolled, whether to declare my candidacy, to make sure I had the right party affiliation that I was comfortable with, I checked the boxes, I made sure that I was hitting the deadlines. And I feel very, very passionate that if you're going to make a decision that is going to impact 40,000 people in a district that you might be representing, that you are paying attention to the deadlines, and if you're going to be a Democrat, you're a proud Democrat, and you have the party behind you, as I do.”
Mitts defended herself.
“Okay, I think that that argument is a false argument, that by some measure, not meeting a deadline doesn't mean that you're committed to your values and your ideals," she said. "So, I'm going to go to Boston, I'm going to represent everyone in the 3rd Berkshire district. People know that I'm a fairly progressive candidate if they know me, and they know that my issues are housing, healthcare, and infrastructure, that I'm fairly left-leaning.”
Davis used her rebuttal time to lean into the issue.
“Just to be clear, the reason why I was confused with my opponent's reasoning is that in March, an interview was published that she said that she was running to be an independent, to really represent everyone, and she did not say that she was running as an independent because she missed the deadline," she said. "So that's where the clarity was missing for me.”
In a March interview with WAMC – the first outlet to report on her candidacy – Mitts said her choice to run as an independent was about the candidate “fighting for all residents of the 3rd Berkshire district” and because she was “on the side of all Berkshire County residents.” As WAMC reported then, Mitts’ original filing was as a Democrat before transitioning to an independent run.
Davis has far outraised Mitts for her campaign, with around $75,000 to her opponent’s roughly $20,000. Mitts framed that as a strength.
“Being someone who has not received any money from any particular groups, I do not feel that I'm in any way tied to any particular interest," she said. "I do not feel that I'm in any way tied to any particular interest. I can represent the interests of everyone in Berkshire County. I will not necessarily be representing my own interests. I really need to represent all of yours.”
Davis said her financial support reflects the vitality of her run.
“I am very, very grateful to have received the endorsements from environmental groups to animal rights groups to unions to the Massachusetts Nurses Association, the AFL-CIO, to reproductive health organizations, Planned Parenthood, Reproductive Equity Now," she said. "So, I am not beholden to these. These are values that I deeply hold, values that are dear to working families, about making a living wage, that ensuring that there's equity, that there's social justice. So, these are values that are meaningful to me, so I am not beholden.”
Early voting in Massachusetts starts on October 19th.
